Chapter Nine- Coldstone Island


Has it really been two weeks?"

Eret sat himself beside his friends and took a swig of ale. Fishlegs and Snotlout looked down at their own mugs gloomily. It really had been two weeks since Hiccup's death. Point blank, the town was ruined. With no chief, no one knew how to go about their regular day. There had not been any town events, dinners, visitors or even meetings, other than the one declaring Astrid as chief until Valka returned. No one knew when Valka would return, she had been gone for over three weeks. Astrid being active chief wasn't too comforting either; none of the three men had even seen a glimpse of her.

They hadn't seen Ruffnut either.

Eret remembered that night. He remembered pressing the cloth to Astrid's shoulder, the blood quickly soaking through. He remembered Ingrid brushing his hands away as she worked to get her daughter away from the scene. He remembered the panicked Hooligans. Some were yelling for the chief, others were yelling to get back to the ships. Then, he remembered looking at Ruffnut.

The blonde girl looked up to the heap of fire and debris that had once been a great hall. Her eyes were blank, and her hands hung uselessly at her side. She was completely still. Almost frozen. She took a step closer to the building but he stopped her suddenly. He grabbed her arm and for the first time, she looked up to his eyes with complete terror.

Eret walked her over to Fishlegs. The man was almost in tears as he watched the flames. Eret gave him a quick slap on the head to make him focus.

"Get Ruffnut to safety. Return to the ships! Tell everyone, back to the ships!"

Eret remembered the long trip home. He watched as Ruffnut sat with her head in her knees, she had cocooned herself in a blanket that someone had thought to put over her shoulders. Eret too sat on the floor of the deck, watching the night skies for any dragons, just like he used to. He thought about approaching her, telling her he was sorry, but she looked too tired.

In the days after their return, Ruffnut locked herself away in her home. No one wanted to bother her; they were all too sad themselves. Over the past two weeks, there had been no talk of a funeral for either Tuffnut or the Chief. It was almost like time was frozen. That was all until one day, when the door to the Great hall opened.

Everyone stopped. All talking and clanging of mugs against wood ceased in a matter of seconds. All eyes were on Astrid as she slowly entered the hall. She looked frail, older. Her shoulder was wrapped in gauze and she walked with a slight limp up to their table. All three men rose from their chairs, helmets flying off of their heads with respect.

Astrid gave each of them blank stares. She looked around the hall; all the other Viking men had risen as well and held their helmets in their hands. It was only until Astrid nodded, that each of them sat down to continue their drinks.

As she turned back to her friends, she had the wind knocked out of her as Fishlegs barreled into her with a hug. She hesitantly wrapped her hands around his back. Astrid heard Fishlegs sniffle and he looked at Snotlout, his eyes glassy. Snotlout reached up a hand and put in on Astrid's shoulder before quickly removing it. She gave him a sad smile. Eret cleared his throat. Astrid pulled away from Fishlegs and cleared her own.

"Right, tell me everything I missed."

Fishlegs argued, "Astrid, you don't have to bounce back right away."

"Yes I do, Fishlegs," she turned to Eret, "what did I miss?"

Eret sighed, "Everyone's looking for answers. They want justice. They want the Warhead's heads on a stick. Rumours have spread that Roren planned that night."

"Roren did plan that night," Astrid voice was dangerous, "he is responsible for this."

Eret raised an eyebrow, "Well, until we know for certain. We need a Chief. That's you, according to Gobber, until Valka returns."

Astrid wrapped her hands around her waist and took a deep breath. Fishlegs was about to comfort her again when she held up a hand to stop him. She looked almost surprised.

"Wait, w- where's Ruffnut?" she suddenly gasped, "Oh my god! Tuff-" her voice cracked, "I completely forgot. I-" Astrid saw Snotlout's eyes well up and he looked away from the group. Astrid then turned to Fishlegs who looked sadly at his feet.

Eret was the first to speak, "Ruff's locked herself away in her home. She won't come out, not even for food or water. I hope she's not starving in there..."

Astrid shook her head and regained control of her emotions. "Alright," she said, "here's what we are going to do. Snotlout, you get all Berkians together, tell them I am back. I am ready to be their temporary chief. Take your dragons out to sea; be at watch for any Warheaders. If you find any, bring them straight to me." she turned to Fishlegs, "Fishlegs, you and I are going to look for Toothless. He's lost, and he doesn't understand what is happening. I have to find him."

"What do you want me to do?" Eret asked.

"Take care of Ruffnut," she said as she pushed Snotlout and Fishlegs towards the door.

"What?" Eret spat, "Why me? She doesn't want to see me!"

"Oh yes she does, believe me." Astrid took him aside for a moment, "You listen to me; don't go breaking her heart more than it already is. You give her whatever she needs, be whoever she needs you to be. Do I make myself clear?"

Eret gulped, "Fine."

Astrid added, "And Eret..."

"Yeah?"

"I know you know...I know you know I'm pregnant," Astrid looked up to him, "Did you…?"

"Tell anyone?" Eret looked back, "No, just your mother. I won't tell anyone else, I'm good at keeping secrets."

"Thank you," Astrid sighed, "Now I have a dragon to find."

Eret decided to stop at the arena beforehand to check on Skullcrusher. He and the other dragons were relaxing in the autumn breeze. He approached the dragon slowly, gently petting his giant head. He looked at Barf and Belch. Belch's head was looking off in the distance. He wasn't as relaxed as the other dragons; he knew something was up, something had happened to Tuffnut. Eret swallowed and made his way up to the Thorston house.

When he found himself at their home, Ruff and Tuff's mother Gerda was sitting outside on a log. Eret awkwardly walked towards the woman. She looked obviously upset. She had just lost one of her children, but Eret felt sorry for her for a different reason on top of that. The town had just lost their chief, and although the news of Tuffnut passing was sad, it was nowhere near as drastic as losing their chief. It looked as though no one gave to give their condolences. Eret bent down to look in the older woman's eyes.

"Morning, Gerda," he caught her gaze, "How's Ruff this morning?"

Gerda suddenly snapped into reality and placed a hand on Eret's chin, "Oh sweet boy... She's the same. You can try to talk to her if you would like, but it's no use, she's just not ready yet. I get her to eat and drink, that's really all I can ask."

Eret thanked the older lady and entered the house. It looked like a house Tuffnut and Ruffnut would be raised in. Knives and axes covered the tables and floors. Eret ran to a pot of potatoes that were boiling over and took them off the fire, Gerda must have forgotten about them. The house was dark, so he went to the fire and threw another log in. Eret heard a noise coming from upstairs. He looked, it was even darker upstairs. He couldn't help noticing a stench coming from above as he climbed the stairs. He squinted and almost gasped. Ruffnut was barely noticeable under a heap of clothes and blankets. Her room was covered in axes, papers, clothes and broken glass. Eret pushed the door open as far as it could go. He went to the window and opened the shutters, gladly allowing sunshine and air in.

Ruffnut made a growl and appeared from under the covers. Her long hair was let down and she looked at Eret with wide eyes. Eret's eyes widened as a glimpse of Ruffnut's skin appeared. She was naked under those blankets. Eret suddenly swore and turned around.

"Sorry!" his knuckles clenched, "I didn't know! Your mother let me in, I swear I didn't know!"

Ruffnut growled again and pushed her hair out of her face, "what are you doing here?"

Eret sucked on his thumb, "You know, I would feel a lot better talking to you if you had your clothes on."

Ruffnut sighed and picked herself off of the bed. Eret heard her rummaging through the clothes on the floor. When he turned around, she had just thrown a shirt over her head. She looked terrible. Her hair was longer than he remembered. He had never seen it out of its three braids, it cascaded down the sides of her head to her stomach. She pushed it back and sat on the corner of her bed. Eret watched as she chewed her fingernails. Her knees were shaking. Black shadows covered her eyes.

Eret sat down softly on the edge of her bed. He waited, desperately wishing that she would say something first. He hadn't prepared a motivational speech before he came. He was hoping she would just bounce back to her regular self and try to flirt with him. Eret let out a puff of air. He wasn't very good at this.

"So...Everyone else is pretty concerned about you. They think you're going to rot in here, which you might, considering the smell." He wrinkled his nose.

Ruffnut shrugged her shoulders, "that's the plan..."

Eret frowned, "hey now...I know this isn't easy for you. But I think it's time we get you back on your feet."

"I don't want to get back on my feet. I would rather stay here. I like it here, it's quiet."

Eret shook his head, "The Ruff I know couldn't stand the quiet."

Ruffnut suddenly shook her head and jumped up from the bed, "You don't' know a Ruff."

He was beyond shocked as she grabbed a glass from the side table and flung it at his head. She looked as wild as an animal. He jumped off the bed and ran for the door; she was quicker and blocked it.

"You don't know me at all. Why would they send you? You're not even our friend, we have only known you for like, a year." she gritted her teeth as she got closer to him. Eret gulped, she looked very dangerous with a piece of shattered glass in her hand.

"That's enough, Ruffnut, blimey; I was just trying to help."

"Oh yeah, well blimey, Eret. I don't want your help!" she imitated him. Eret's eyes went from her eyes to her hand. She looked down; she must have squeezed the glass to hard, blood dripped from her finger tips. In one quick movement, Eret grasped her hand and made her drop the glass. She swore silently and pulled her hand away; examining the wound she had created.

Eret watched in shock. He never thought she was capable of being that dangerous. He hovered over her as she wiped the blood on her knee.

"Just...get out," she sighed.

Eret was tempted to run as fast as he could. He bit his lip. He couldn't leave her, not all bloody and alone. He reached down to the floor and grabbed a piece of clothing. He ripped it in to a small bandage and took Ruffnut's hand. He slowly wrapped the fabric around the cut. Ruffnut tried to pull away but he held tight.

"Wh- why are you doing this?" she growled, "Why are you helping me?"

Because Astrid would kill me if I didn't, he thought.


Astrid sighed as she brushed a branch away from her face. Fishlegs was beside her, yelling out the dragon's name. A sudden pain hit her heart as she realized what she had done. It had been over two weeks since Hiccup's death. She had locked herself away, and did not take any care of Stormfly or even bothered to comfort Toothless. The poor dragon was lost and alone in the forest. Astrid's eyes went to Stormfly; she had her snout in the grass trying to pick up the black dragon's scent. Luckily for Astrid, Stormfly had been forgiving. As soon as she was dressed and out of the house the blue dragon was already nudging her lovingly.

The young woman was still not quite herself. She wore her father's old coat. It was heavily furred and large, more of a blanket than anything. She still hadn't washed her hair in a week and it swayed down her back in knots. It was cold, and winter was coming. The forest trees were bright with warm colours and light frost covered the ground from the previous night. She wanted to crawl back into bed, but Astrid knew it was time to let go. Hiccup would just laugh at her if he saw her like this. He would say that Astrid was acting like a scared terrible terror, and then she would playfully punch him on the arm. With Hiccup gone, it was Astrid's responsibility to find Toothless. She had to do it. No questions asked.

As they walked deeper into the forest, Fishlegs glanced at her several times. She watched her feet.

"Would you like to talk about it?" Fishlegs softly asked her.

Astrid turned towards him, "Not really, no."

"Are you sure?" Fishlegs asked.

"Eh- yes I am sure."

Fishlegs sniffled, "Are you sure? Because I could really use someone to talk to..."

Astrid turned to the whimpering man and sighed, "Stop it, Fishlegs. Get yourself together. I can't be your mother and wipe your tears, okay? I have more to worry about than your feelings."

"You're right. I- I'm sorry...I just can't believe he's gone."

Astrid's eyes watered, but they were both shocked back into focus as a dragon's roar filled the air. They turned to see a black dragon growling at them.

Toothless.

Astrid immediately approached the dragon.

"Astrid-" his eyes never left the angry dragon, "Maybe you shouldn't."

She brushed Fishlegs' hand away. She took a deep breath and looked back to the dragon. His glare went from Fishlegs to her. The dragon's eyes widened as the girl approached him.

"Toothless…" her voice was soft. Both hands stretched out to him, "Toothless, it's okay."

He growled at her. Astrid was only a foot away from him. She slowly got to her knees in front of him and reached out a hand to him. Toothless had a sudden look of understanding. It was just Astrid. Just the young girl he had taken on a flight all those years ago. It was just her. He stopped growling and let her touch his head. He looked up to her eyes. They were bright with tears. Her face had fallen. Her bottom lip and hands trembled as she touched him. And then he knew. Something had happened. Hiccup was gone.

The dragon let out a roaring moan. He lowered his head. He caught sight of Astrid's stomach. He noticed the slight curving, moon shape. He sniffed it, and was overwhelmed with the urge to protect her. He nudged his head into her chest and Astrid rubbed the dragon. She held onto him tightly, letting the fresh tears run down her face.

"It's okay." she then added, "its okay, bud."


The darkness was agonizing.

He was unsure if it was night or day, he couldn't even tell how long they had been down there. He felt sick to his stomach, he had finished his bread hours ago and he was starving. Hiccup could tell that Tuffnut was crying. Although mostly silent, he could hear the sniffles in the dark. He felt like crying too, but he was too tired. When almost all seemed lost, Hiccup rolled onto his back and placed his hands on his chest, not caring about the puddles of water or the squeaks of the rats. He took a deep breath and let his mind go blank; maybe this would be his final resting place.

Hiccup opened his eyed when Tuffnut hit him. He growled, "What was that for?" Tuffnut gasped, "I wasn't sure if you were breathing, you sounded like you stopped breathing."

"So you hit me?" Hiccup massaged his shoulder.

He could hear Tuffnut hyperventilating. The male twin picked himself off the floor and banged on the walls. Hiccup swore silently and Tuffnut threw himself to the sides of the ship in panic. "LET US OUT OF HERE!" Tuffnut roared, "I can't breathe down here! Let us walk the plank! Let us out!"

Hiccup jumped to his feet, "What are you doing? Are you insane? SHUT UP!"

Hiccup jumped on the yelling man and they fell to the ground. Tuffnut fought him and yelled despite having Hiccup's hand tightly across his mouth. Suddenly, the ship stopped. It was such a rapid change that it caused barrels to come crashing down onto them. Hiccup was sure he could hear a rat screaming as the whole ship shook. After a few seconds of grinding, the ship stopped permanently and the great doors opened. It was night time; the moon filled the ship with light, causing Hiccup and Tuffnut to wince. As his eyes focused, Hiccup saw the dark eyed man looking over them. "Don't get your panties in a knot, you sacks of meat. We are here."

Tuffnut opened his mouth, "Where is here?

Before either of them could get an answer, the man let down a rope. Tuffnut eyed Hiccup to climb first; Hiccup took the rope and climbed the best he could. When he got to the surface, the man pushed him to another large guy and Hiccup was engulfed with a tight hold. As Tuffnut pulled himself up, Hiccup took in his surroundings. The moon was bright on the water; the boat was sitting on the sand of a fairly small island. The island was beautiful; rocks formed cliffs on either side, and houses were sprawled out everywhere. His heart tightened at the slight reminder of Berk, but this island had no dragons.

He and Tuffnut were pushed off of the boat with axes to their backs. They were guided up the beach and into the village. Where could they be taking them? Above all, Hiccup hoped they were not going to their execution. As they marched through center town, sounds of people and music became clearer. It had to be midnight, but the town was lit up like a party. They marched passed singing drunks. Hiccup looked to see a group of teenage boys on their knees sharing a pipe. He ignored the stares of two women sitting out on the porch, they whispered as he passed. Tuffnut almost choked as a very large woman in very little clothes approached him. The woman smelled of alcohol. She rubbed her chest against Tuffnut's body and kissed his forehead, the man holding Tuffnut pushed the lady away and told her to find work somewhere else. The woman swore at him. They passed a whole group of woman who looked the same. Hiccup felt uncomfortable as he saw one who was in the middle of getting her next customer.

As they passed center town, Hiccup gulped. They were heading right towards the very large cliffs and rocks. He suddenly saw an entrance in the rocks and was amazed. The whole cliff of rocks seemed to be some sort of building. He and Tuffnut exchanged glances as they entered. The entry room was much quieter than the town outside; it was lit by fire sticks and was empty except for a man sitting with a very large axe. He was guarding sets of keys.

"Calder," the axe man spoke.

Hiccup turned to the dark eyed man, so he must be Calder. It was about time Hiccup knew his name.

"I'll need the key for the west-end cave," Calder spoke confidently.

The axe man stood, he was at least two feet taller than Hiccup. He half smiled as he towered over the two Berkians, "These must be the newbies. Welcome to Hel, boys. We do hope you enjoy your stay."

"Please, don't overwhelm them;" Calder told Axe man, "They have had a long journey."

Hiccup wanted to say something. He wanted to punch Calder and this axe man in the face. His heart raced, he wanted to know where he was, why he was here, and most of all he wanted to go home. Instead he gave Calder a look of pure hatred.

The grip on Hiccup's shoulder tightened as they were pushed down the cave. It was very cold in the caves, and he shivered as they went down many dark ways. A lit fire stick was beside his left ear; the cave halls looked all the same, and how Calder navigated through them was a mystery. Hiccup couldn't concentrate on the walk, all he could hear was dripping. Drip. Drip. Drip. He looked around the cave walls, they seemed dry and steady, and where on earth was that water coming from. Drip. Drip. Drip. The water dripped as fast as his heartbeat. But suddenly it got quieter and quieter. He could still hear it, though. It bugged him more than anything.

They arrived at the very end of the cave. He saw great metal walls separating one side of the cave wall. He looked at Calder who opened the gates and turned to Tuffnut and himself.

"Try to sleep the rest of the night. You will need your energy in the morning." With that, Tuffnut and Hiccup were pushed into the cell. Hiccup lost his balance, and he fell onto the hard ground. This room was lighter than the rest of the cave. He looked up to see the moon shining through a hole above. It was hardly big enough to fit a terrible terror. When he turned over to see if Tuffnut was okay, he found himself staring at four other men. A blonde one, with a faint scar over the left side of his face offered Hiccup his hand, "Sorry this happened to you boys. But welcome to your worst nightmare."

Hiccup hesitantly took the man's hand and stood, "Where are we?"

The blond helped Tuffnut stand as well and cleared his throat, "A small island, Coldstone Island."

Hiccup's eyebrows lowered, "I- I have never heard of this island."

"You wouldn't have, it's kept very low key. My name is Frey," he pointed to two other males who were standing beside each other, "this is Aradynn," he pointed his thumb to the one with curly black hair who grunted a smile. Frey pointed to the other one, he had very little hair, and scars outlined is skull, "and this is Scar, we call him that for...various reasons."

Hiccup frowned as something suddenly jumped out at him. A young man, no older than nineteen jumped out at him to shake his hand. He was dark skinned and spoke in a language Hiccup had never heard. Frey jumped forward and knocked the dark skinned boy over the head.

"Sorry," Frey said as the boy smiled at Hiccup, "this is Pavel. He does not speak our language. We usually just ignore him, but he likes meeting people."

The boy approached Hiccup with a smile, "Pavel."

Hiccup took the boy's hand and shook it; he looked to the others who were staring back with kind smiles. He then looked at Tuffnut, who looked confused and tired. Tuffnut met Hiccup's eyes just as Hiccup spoke.

"Uh, this is Tuffnut. And- and I'm Hiccup."

Frey clapped his hands, "Great! Nice to meet you Tuffnut and Hiccup. Now, we should really get some sleep. Busy day tomorrow."

Without question, all four men fell onto the cave floor and not another word was said. Hiccup turned to Tuffnut who was now staring at them with shock. This was going to be a long night.


Sorry this chapter is late.. My beta was busy all weekend and I couldn't post it without running it by her. Also, annoyingly enough, my computer broke this weekend and the backspace key is broken on my laptop; so I can't really write on anything but my tablet,. Alas, next chapter will be posted soon. Don't forget to leave a review!